


white chocolate macadamia

by timelessidyll



Series: a place in your home [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, literally nothing to tag lmao, single dad! taeil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-06-29 21:50:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15738018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timelessidyll/pseuds/timelessidyll
Summary: It's Naomi's birthday, so of course Taeil is going to worry about every single aspect of the party, right down to the snacks. As usual, it's Taeyong who gets caught up in dealing with the mess.





	white chocolate macadamia

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this with more motivation than ves' birthday fic it's fine

Taeil checks everything off in his head, running through his mental list and organizing as he goes. Streamers, check. Balloons, check. Taeyong, check. He blinks, staring at Taeyong's arm in his grip before shaking his head and releasing it. He doesn't give Taeyong so much as a second glance before going back to his task, ignoring the confused look he'd gotten. Napkins, check. Banner, check. Cake, check.

 

"Taeil, everything is fine, look." Taeyong shoves a real paper checklist into his vision, so close that Taeil has to crane his neck back to bring it into focus. "We've already put the presents in the car, I'm putting the streamers and banner in now, and you're bringing the cake. I'll come back up and get the balloons, napkins, and forks, and then we can go."

 

"Are you sure that's everything?" Taeil asks anyway, bouncing his right leg anxiously. "What about the snacks?"

 

"We've got the cherries, lemon tarts, and the guacamole and chips. On top of that, there's mangoes, chocolate-covered strawberries, about ten different types of kebabs you got catered, and cookies. We have enough food to serve as dinner, we'll be okay." Taeil's mind flashes pictures of each thing Taeyong named, and he'd actually almost begun to calm down. Then he tries to remember what cookies they had and came up blank.

 

"Taeyong, I don't remember any cookies." He grips the other's arm tightly enough to dig his fingernails in, and it makes Taeyong wince. "I don't think we got cookies."

 

"I'm sure we got the cookies," he says soothingly, trying to delicately peel Taeil's nails out of his hand. He's attempting to be the level-headed one in this situation even though the absolute chaos is starting to get to him because he knows Taeil has almost no calmness to draw on when it comes to making Naomi's parties perfect. "White chocolate macadamia nuts are her favorite, there's no way we would forget it." Taeil releases Taeyong's arm for the second time and starts opening the bags they'd packed the food in, growing more and more numb to the panic coursing through him while Taeyong felt his calmness slip away. He got to the last bag and when he came up empty-handed, Taeyong knew he wasn't going to be able to stay rational.

 

"Oh my god, we don't have the cookies," he mumbles as the panic sets in. "Naomi's going to be at the park in less than a half hour and not only do we not have her second favorite food of all time, but we have to set everything up before she gets there. We're at least ten minutes away, not counting traffic and lights, and setting up is absolutely going to take up the rest of the time." He'd started pacing somewhere halfway through his panicked rant, and the contrast between him and Taeil is shocking. Taeil is next to the bag, still as a statue, watching him try to wear a hole in the carpet with sharp, decisive eyes.

 

"Are you done?" he asks when there's a lull in Taeyong's voice. He doesn't get a response. "Alright, we told Johnny and Chittaphon to get her there at 3:45. It's 3:21. Call Johnny and tell him to ditch Chittaphon to deal with Yoosung, Naomi, and Mango and come to the party ground to help us set up. On the way, I'll drop you off at the store so that you can buy the cookies, and once I've given Johnny the stuff, I'll pick you up." He's already picking up bags and party supplies while Taeyong is still processing, and he bites his cheek to stop himself from snapping at him to get going.

 

"Right, ok," Taeyong finally acknowledges, pulling his phone out and tapping furiously across the screen. Three minutes later, Taeil's got everything, including a still freaking out Taeyong, in the car, and he rockets out of the neighborhood and onto the main street, about ten miles above the speed limit and with a distinct lack of care of other people on the road. If Taeyong was worried earlier, it's nothing compared to his current white-knuckled grip on the grab handle above the car window and his fear-blown eyes.

 

"Aren't you a lawyer?" he screeches when Taeil turns to the right sharply. "Shouldn't you care more about the law?"

 

"We're on a schedule, Taeyong, sacrifices have to be made."

 

"The only sacrifice being made is my life!"

 

"You're being melodramatic," Taeil says dismissively, stopping abruptly in front of the grocery store to let a weak-kneed Taeyong get out. "Call me if you have questions, gotta go, love you," he says before Taeyong closes the door and he's speeding off again. Taeyong shudders from the memory of what he'd just experienced and speed walks into the store to get what they need as quickly as he can.

 

He has to call Taeil two minutes later.

 

"Listen, how about we not get cookies? They're overrated anyway, we don't need white chocolate macadamia nut cookies." He laughs nervously, all the while staring at the price tag.

 

"Yongie, I love you, but you must be on crack or something," Taeil snaps.

 

"They're twelve dollars for eighteen cookies, Taeil, I physically cannot do this."

 

"That's your big issue? We live in a capitalist society, Taeyong, I don't know what you expected. Just buy the damn cookies."

 

"I can already feel the dent in my wallet," he whines while picking up two boxes. He knows that Taeil is rolling his eyes at his dramatics, but he can't help himself. It almost feels like he's giving in to the money-hungry corporations behind the food prices.

 

"Fill up the dent with the knowledge that Naomi will be over the moon having her favorite cookies at her birthday party." Taeyong snorts at his word usage.

 

"You said moon," he laughs into his phone, ignoring Taeil's groan. "Ok, ok, I'm heading to the checkout, if there's anything else you need, tell me now."

 

"I think everything else is good. I'll be there in about seven minutes."

 

"Precise," Taeyong says with a hum. "I'll see you then, love you, bye." It's a habit to finish every phone call between them like that. It's also 3:32 and the worry in his stomach is coiling tighter and tighter.

 

Taeil is true to his promise, arriving at 3:38, and they're speeding off again, this time with Taeyong encouraging him to go even faster. The time to care about the law had long passed. At 3:43, they're collapsed on the ground, the stress finally catching up to them, while Johnny admires the setup.

 

"Doesn't look half bad," he says with a grin toward at Taeil, who has Taeyong's head in his lap and his own using the tree behind him as support.

 

"It better fucking not," he says, out of breath, glancing at his watch. He pushes Taeyong's head off his legs and stands up, ignoring his complaints. "Come on, Naomi, Yoosung, and the other kids will be arriving soon. You shouldn't look like a zombie when that happens."

 

"I'll look like whatever I want," Taeyong mumbles rebelliously, but he listens regardless and pushes himself up - just in time for Mango to sneak under his arms and lick his face. He hears Naomi's delighted voice soon after, and as he pushes Mango off of him and glances at the smile Taeil gives their daughter, he thinks that maybe the gray hairs he got from today were worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> [check out my twitter!](https://twitter.com/timelessidyll)


End file.
